Why Mobile Is More Important than Ever in 2016

If you have a website that you are trying to optimise for the search engines, you will probably already know just how important it is that your site is mobile friendly. As we enter 2016, there is now more reason than ever to ensure your site is optimised for mobile users, and here are some facts and stats you should know.

Google Gives Preference to Mobile-Friendly Sites

Google’s mobile-friendly update in April 2015 meant that anyone searching on a mobile device will have their results affected by whether a site is optimised for mobile or not.

This is common sense. Searchers want the best experience, and Google wants to provide them with this whatever device they use. So if you take your SEO seriously, a mobile-friendly site is now essential.

Mobile Advertising Predicted to Increase

In Mashable, Dan Sapozhnikov from AdGate Media LLC predicted that mobile video advertising will see rapid growth with more people moving from TV to mobile. You can use video to capture attention and redirect users to your site or app, and now could be a great time to start seriously thinking about mobile advertising with videos and other forms of content.

Mobile Payments on the Rise

Consumers are growing more accustomed to mobile payments these days. In the same Mashable article, Shalyn Dever from Chatter Buzz suggests that this is going to continue in 2016, and there is going to be a growing need to integrate mobile payment features into sites and apps.

The Power of Apps

Mobile optimisation is important, but so are mobile apps. Apps are more visually pleasing and more functional in many ways, and more companies are going to develop their own apps over coming years.

SEO for apps is also becoming increasingly important. Google has already said it is experimenting with indexing app-only content in the search results, and many people are predicting more search results for apps showing up.

Greater Personalisation in Retail

eConsultancy made some predictions about mobiles in 2016 as well. Among the predictions was that retail will become more personalised using mobile phones, and more retail companies are going to start focusing on mobile phones as user hubs over the coming months.

The Growth of AI

Artificial intelligence is also likely to continue getting better over the coming year. While huge changes may not arrive in 2016, it is something to keep in mind for the future. Once Siri, Google Now and Cortana get much better, this could fundamentally change the way we access information.

Ensure You Have a Mobile Strategy in Place

The future is looking increasingly mobile, as the above developments show. If you still do not have a dedicated mobile strategy in place, now is the time to start. By putting mobile first, you can ensure you are prepared for the developments that will take place over the course of 2016 and beyond.

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